Page 26 of Cursed Pack

GRIFFIN

Stakeouts looked so much more fun in the movies. It was only day two, and I was already bored out of my mind. When I’d volunteered myself, I expected this would be a quick job. But when I got back here this morning, Gray was still milling about in the camp. It seemed like he was on clean up duty after whatever fun the pack had had last night. I left after the third victim's wails ended, it had been close to midnight, and I struggled to keep my mind off of what they were doing. I hated being here. I wanted Gray to do what he needed to so that I could finish this little adventure and go back home. To Emily…

The longer I sat here, the more I thought about her. She was the only reason why I managed to keep the screaming out of my head. I thought about the bond and the trip we took to find the Ancient One. How these other feelings started to creep in closer to the end of that journey and how they’d grown since.

I still didn’t want to be bound by a mate. I didn’t want to drag anyone into the nightmare that was my life, but I also had to admit that I wanted to know Emily. Maybe then the lust would be a little more manageable… All the way back to my safe spot for the night, I thought about how she felt in my arms, her fingers on my chest, and how magnetic her lips were. I had to take a cold shower before the change to calm down. When I changed back, I decided to hell with wanting to make Cassian angry, he would be either way. I didn’t want to hurt Emily, and I’d start making up for it by getting to know her. I smiled behind the bush, letting myself feel excited at the prospect for a few minutes.

Nothing much had happened since I started this stakeout. Kellan spent a lot of the time shouting instructions and Victor had made an appearance once or twice. Gray ran around after Kellan. His nickname was a good description of his features. Everything about him lacked color; his hair was a dark gray, his eyes were too, and even his skin had a hint of gray. As far as I could remember, his personality matched his nickname too. I snorted at the memory of his humorless demeanor. He was the same age as Kellan, and when I was younger he would take part in the bullying, but it wasn’t hard to outsmart him. When Kellan wasn’t looking I’d set up traps—simple ones like a pile of shit outside of his cabin. Kellan and Victor would yell at him for stinking up the whole camp when he reemerged in the mornings, his boots covered in feces. It was the small things that kept me sane during those years.

I bit into the third protein bar of the day and nearly spat it out when I spotted Ivy. The lithe brunette sauntered to my brother and kissed him hard before Kellan shoved her off. When I turned 16, the girl that all the guys liked decided to pay attention to me. In a world where everything was dark and miserable, she was kind, and I immediately fell for her. Ivy was beautiful in the most basic definition of the word; her hair hung past her waist and she kept it tied in a braid, she wore clothes that showed as much skin as possible without being offensive, and her nose and lip piercings gave off an air of rebelliousness. Back then, I thought she was the most captivating creature. In the rare times where Kellan didn’t demand that I torture innocent victims, Ivy and I spent it together, in my cabin.

I started confiding in Ivy. She listened attentively and I thought she understood what I was going through. I thought I’d finally found someone in the pack who was like me. But a year into our relationship she foiled my first plan to escape. After a particularly intense encounter, she left my cabin and minutes later Kellan stormed in and beat me senseless. Besides the day outside of Morgan’s bar, it was the worst he’d ever done. He broke my nose, my fingers, and my ribs. When he was done, Victor tied me to the post in the center of the camp and ordered Gray to whip me. It turned out that the only reason Ivy paid any attention to me was because she wanted to crawl into Kellan’s bed. It seemed like she was unsuccessful then, and now. After that, I shut myself off, I didn’t want a girlfriend, a mate, or a partner. I didn’t want friends either and I’d been successful. Until Emily…

The day went by excruciatingly slow, it wasn’t the lack of company that got to me; I was used to being on my own. But after a while, I missed getting Cassian riled up, and I wanted to spend more time with Emily. Morgan had been surprisingly quiet. She responded to my message with just Okay. I’d make an effort to spend more time with her too when I got back. I knew Morgan wanted me as more than just a friend, she’d been hinting at it for months. After Emily came into the picture, her jealousy was obvious. Morgan had always just been a friend to me, nothing more, but I couldn’t bring myself to put her down. I had no doubt that she would most likely end the friendship and go her own way, and as much as I didn’t mind being alone, she was the only friend I had.

Sitting in the bush gave me lots of time to think. Watching Victor boss everyone around made me wonder how I would treat a pack if I was an alpha. I was never interested in being an alpha, but a small part of me wanted to take over the Langston pack just to show them what it was like to not hurt others, to treat other species and their own better, but I also knew that most of them were too far gone to change. It would take years to take the bad out of the pack, and it made me sad to think of it. Maybe one day, if we survived the next few weeks. Or maybe I would just stick to my original plan and move somewhere remote.

My phone vibrated and I practically jumped out of the bush. It was getting late and I was counting down the hours until I could leave for the nearby town to change. There was an old ruin between the town and the woods that I discovered a few years ago. Down in the ruin, below ground was a room. It was probably used as a prison, torture chamber, or something because there were steel cuffs bolted to the walls—four on the floor and four a little higher. Ankle level and wrist level, enough for two people. I tested them out and they were sturdy enough to withstand the change. It wasn’t comfortable, but it was hidden and quiet. I checked the message and smiled when Emily’s name flashed on the screen. She wanted to know if I was okay and if I could call. I’d have to leave a little earlier to call, speaking now would be far too risky. It was cute that she kept checking in, like my safety mattered.

“Your little pet was an amazing escape artist. I assume she had a little help though, she was not in any shape to walk on her own.” A familiar voice drifted through the leaves and my body stilled. Shit. “You can come out now, Brother. Or we can drag you out.”

The world stopped, time stood still while my heart beat in my throat. I didn’t hear them, didn’t see them. I shouldn’t have let myself get distracted. Now my worst nightmare was about to be realized. Shit. I wanted to send a message to Emily, but my fingers were frozen, as if my body thought that if it stayed still I’d be invisible. Two big hands clamped on my shoulders. I had no idea how many of them were out there but I would fight. I let Kellan pull me out, just to see what situation I was in. There were seven of the biggest in the pack standing around the bush. Victor wasn’t there and I didn’t recognize most of them but Kellan grinned devilishly, as if I was the prize to some big competition. Shit.

“What a surprise! I had no idea you were here, Brother.” I spat the word at him. “I was just out here, picking berries, minding my own business.”

Kellan chuckled and crossed his arms over his chest. “Good to see you still have that shit sense of humor. Don’t even think of fighting. We have more wolves in the woods watching.”

“That’s called stalking, Kellan, and it’s frowned upon in society. You should find a new hobby.” I said blandly, looking at my nails. I quickly shoved my hands into my pockets to hide the shaking.

“Enough. Let’s take a little walk into camp. Refresh your memory a bit. Victor has been dying to see you again,” Kellan said and laughed. He grabbed my shoulder so tight I’m sure the bone would bruise. I wanted to run, but it was a waste of energy; I would be caught in seconds and whatever they planned to do to me would end up being much worse. “We’ve missed you.”

Gray snatched my phone from my back pocket as Kellan shoved me in the direction of the camp. “Why don’t we just chalk this up to coincidence and go our separate ways. I’m sure you have more important things to do. I know I certainly do.”

Kellan ignored me, the rest of the pack followed us; some of them whistled, or sniggered, most whispered. The wooden poles came into view and the protein bars threatened to make a reappearance. Fresh blood soaked the soil, the poles were stained by rivulets that never stopped. Kellan marched me to the center pole and Victor leaned against one of the other posts, watching but not saying anything. I threw a smile in his direction, hoping my eyes were filled with the “fuck you” I wanted to say out loud.

“Welcome home, Son. I’m sure you’ll find everything to your liking.” Victor’s voice was just as lifeless as it had always been. “Kellan, tie him up to our finest pole. He’ll have to hang around for a while. We have preparations to make.”

Shit. “Having a party?” I asked, hating how strained the words came out. I cleared my throat.

“Oh yes, and you’ll be the guest of honor,” Victor stated and turned to the main cabin.

Without another word, hands grabbed my arms, neck, and shoulders gruffly. They weren’t being particularly gentle, and in minutes they’d managed to hoist me up and tie my wrists, head, ankles, and legs to the pole. The ropes were tight enough that there was no way that I could move. They pinched my skin painfully. This is going to be terrible. Hopefully, I’ll die quickly… Kellan spat on the ground in front of me and left in the same direction that Victor had gone. The rest of the wolves sneered and snapped at me, and I rolled my eyes, which annoyed them even more.

They’d left werewolves up here during the change before, I’d never seen it but I knew it was terrible. Turning into an animal that walks on four legs most of the time and being forced into a standing position meant that your bones broke in the wrong directions. I was dreading it and already trying to figure out how to get myself out of here before midnight. And whatever they were preparing for meant that Kellan would put me through hell, a small piece of me hoped that being my brother would strike up some nonexistent care, that he would go easy on me. I snorted at the ridiculous idea; that would never happen. Kellan lacked the ability to give a shit about anyone other than himself.

After what felt like hours, the sun was completely gone, leaving a red hue in the evening sky. I couldn’t move my head and I strained against the rope as a clanging sound came toward me. Dread crept into my stomach. I knew whatever it was it would be bad. The camp was surprisingly deserted, and I’d only seen one or two of my old pack in the few hours that I’d been hanging here. Whatever they were preparing for must be big, especially if it involved the entire camp.

“Brother, my apologies for neglecting you for so long. I hope you’re not too uncomfortable,” Kellan drawled from behind me.

“Oh no, five star service. I’m 100% comfortable.”

“Pity. It’s about to get a lot more uncomfortable.” Kellan finally came into view with a bag in hand. I recognized the old brown leather bag, the clanking sound came from all of Kellan’s favorite torture toys. I’d even used some of them a few years ago when Victor forced me to do the things that Kellan was about to do to me. “We only have two or three hours left to play… for tonight. I promise I’ll make the best of it.”

Pack members slowly started to filter into the center of the camp. They'd created wooden seats a few feet away from the poles—a viewing area. They whispered amongst one another and almost everyone wore an excited expression. While Kellan unpacked an array of sharp, glistening weapons onto a makeshift table, Victor appeared from his cabin and took his seat in the front row. His lips pulled up slightly in a dangerous smile, they’d never had a deserter and I had no doubt that I would receive special attention.

“Ladies and dogs,! Most of you will recognize this traitor. He’s been missing for a while but I’m glad to officially welcome my brother back.” Kellan waved his hands around and pointed to me. “I have a special show planned for all of you. Rogue wolves deserve the best treatment, and you deserve the best entertainment!” He turned to face me again. “I’m going to ask you a few questions, your punishment will depend on how honest you are.”

Goosebumps covered my entire body, images of previous victims flashed in my mind. Their bodies cut, raw and bleeding, their voices begging to end it all, and I knew what was coming for me would be much worse. I deserved it for putting others through the same thing.

---